Past Seasons

Black Swan State Theatre Company

Assassins: The musical theatre event of the year!

Assassins tells the stories of nine people who committed (or attempted to commit) political murder in the United States of America over a period of two centuries. The musical moves through various times and places with imagined meetings between these assassins. Brush up on these key historical players before you come see the show! Dubbed "the musical theatre event of the year" - don't miss out on this highlight in the Perth theatre calendar.

ASSASSIN: John Wilkes Booth (1838-1865) An actor and passionate champion of the South during the Civil War.Assassinated President Lincoln during a performance of Our American Cousin at Ford’s Theatre, Washington DC, April 14, 1865.PRESIDENT: Abraham Lincoln

ASSASSIN: Charles Guiteau (1841-1882) A Republican, theologian and lawyer who wrote a campaign speech for President Garfield and assassinated him to promote the sales of his book, in the waiting room of the Baltimore & Potomac Railroad Station, Washington 2 July 1881.PRESIDENT: James A. Garfield

ASSASSIN: Leon Czolgosz (1873-1901) The son of Polish Catholic immigrants who spent most of his life as a factory worker and keen anarchist (after attending lectures held by Emma Goldman). Assassinated President McKinley during a public reception at the temple of Music Pavilion at the Pan-American Exposition, Buffalo, New York, 6 September 1901.PRESIDENT: William McKinley

ASSASSIN: Giuseppe Zangara (1900-1933) A short (under five feet) immigrant who failed to assassinate President-Elect Roosevelt as he stopped to give a speech to well-wishers in Bayfront Park, Miami, Florida, 15 February 1933. Zangara had to stand on a chair and it wobbled.PRESIDENT: Franklin D. Roosevelt

ASSASSIN: Samuel Byck (1930-1974) An unemployed loner, who picketed the White House on Christmas Eve dressed as Santa Claus, and died trying to implement his assassination plan of President Nixon at Baltimore-Washington International Airport. He hijacked a commercial jetliner which he intended to crash dive into the White House, 22 Feb 1974.PRESIDENT: Richard Nixon

ASSASSIN: Lynette “Squeaky” Fromme (1948- ) Attempted to assassinate President Ford as he left the Senator Hotel, Sacramento, California, 5 September 1975.She was a member of the "family" of disciples of the mass murderer Charles Manson.PRESIDENT: Gerald Ford

ASSASSIN: Sarah Jane Moore (1930- ) A five-times married FBI informer,who attempted to assassinate President Ford tore-establish her radical credentials, as he left the St Francis Hotel, San Francisco, California, 22 September 1975. This occurred seventeen days after Squeaky Fromme’s attempt.PRESIDENT: Gerald Ford

ASSASSIN: John Hinckley (1955- ) A university dropout and aspiring songwriter with an obsession with Taxi Driver… To impress actress Jodi Foster, Hinckley attempted to assassinate President Regan as he left the Washington Hilton, 30 March 1981.PRESIDENT: Ronald Reagan

ASSASSIN: Lee Harvey Oswald (1939-1963) An ex-Marine turned stock boy in the Texas School Book Depository who assassinated President Kennedy from the sixth floor of the Texas School Book Depository, Dallas, Texas, 22 November 1963.PRESIDENT: John F. Kennedy